For William and Andrea’s birthday month, they’d like you to not buy them any gifts, cakes,  flaming cocktails or party bus rides. Instead, they’d like you to extend your generous hearts and wallets to two mothers for whom your donations will go a long, long way.

Will and Andy would also like to stop speaking in the third person — sorry about that.

When we discovered Madam Ro’s and Anne’s stories on Ray of Hope, a crowdfunding charity for people in need who fall through the cracks, we empathised and connected with their situations of single motherhood and mental health challenges. By contributing to this campaign, 100% of your donations will go directly to Madam Ro and Anne.

MEET MADAM RO

Our first chosen beneficiary is Mdm Ro, a single mother of 2 who requires financial assistance to send her child with autism to an inclusive preschool that provides early intervention and therapy. With your help, she will also be able to send her son to childcare, allowing her to start generating some income for the family. Mdm Ro has set a goal of $9,380 which includes school and bus fees, online platform fees, a deposit and insurance. Visit her Ray of Hope Campaign here.

MEET ANNE

As a stateless mother of 3 who suffers from various mental health challenges, Anne is struggling to pay off her son’s educational arrears as he too is stateless, and therefore ineligible for education and medical subsidies. Adopted by a Malaysian couple as an infant and raised in Singapore, Anne became officially stateless as her parents did not apply for Singaporean citizenship for her. Unfortunately, Anne’s 10-year-old son is also classified as stateless because he was born out of wedlock.

Over the years, Anne and her current husband have struggled to support her son’s education and to date, the family has incurred over $13,000 in arrears – $9,573 of which was for primary school fees. Anne would like to find a job to lighten her husband’s financial burden but is hindered by health issues and caregiving duties, having been diagnosed with depression, schizophrenia and anxiety. Recently, their 3 year-old was also provisionally diagnosed with autism. Ray of Hope is raising $9,573 to help Anne’s son with his educational arrears. This will relieve the family’s financial burden as they await the outcome of her son’s appeal for citizenship. Visit her Ray of Hope Campaign here.

While these two families have a collective goal of raising $18,953, we’re hoping to make a dent in that number with this birthday campaign. If we achieve our goal of $2,500 earlier than expected, we’ll extend our target to help make a bigger difference.

With your generosity, we can help support Mdm Ro’s child with autism and give her an opportunity to get back into the workforce, while also giving Anne’s family the chance to break out of debt and start afresh. Donate today and gift them a reason to celebrate. Big hugs and hearts to all donors, friends and family. <3

ABOUT RAY OF HOPE

100% of your donations go directly to our beneficiaries as Ray of Hope does not take a cut from funds donated. We even cover 3rd party credit card charges (if you choose not to) that other crowdfunding platforms deduct from your donations.

100% of all campaigns are also fully verified, so you know your funds go to real people with real needs.

We take donor accountability very seriously, with yearly audited accounts and strong governance in place to ensure that your donations are properly channeled to the beneficiaries.

Ray of Hope is a registered charity and a member of the National Council of Social Services.